Moonstruck Farms

Okay, now I can breath, two markets in two days and I am always wound up and exhausted at the end so I pulled in the driveway to see all 100 chickens running to a bush where "One" had found something good to eat?  Then all of a sudden all 100 were running for the coop.... an Air Force jet flew over...they ran for the coop like a coyote was on their tail...have you ever seen a chicken run...need a really good laugh...watch a chicken run!!!  Nothing better than chicken TV!!  Market was another learning adventure...Cornish Game Hens sold out...baby Mustard/Kale Mix and Baby Mustard Mix sold out.  I put them in $1.00 bags and a few ate them before they left the market...go figure???  But then again the reason I bagged them up was because I was snacking on them in the greenhouse and decided they were so tender and tasty I should bag some up?  Lots of discussions at market about making proscuitto and chicken stock and how one customer made five meals out a 5 pound chicken for two people!!! I love our discussions!!!  Wow, you guys are changing our world for the better...better eating...better economy...less gas consumption..win.win.win!!!  You go guys!! Moonstruck signing out!

I feel like I have ants in my pants.  No plastic yet for greenhouse, temperatures are still so low that even the current greenhouse is slow, and I should probably have Agribon cover over it to get things sped up, but I keep saying to myself "work on the rows in the new greenhouse, the plastic will be here any day and you need to be ready to just throw transplants in!"  If I had nails I would have bitten them all off by now....ugh....I need more produce....major growing pains and these are painful.  Unfortunately it is also the nature of the business...Mother Nature rules.  Speaking of....I noticed that some of the dormant Winterbor kale had been eaten up quite a bit...found a hole...stuck a hose in it...watch for 5 minutes...did not fill up...went inside rolled out some rolls for dinner and put in to rise....collected eggs...hole still not filling up...did 10 more minutes of work....checked again and the water was just starting to percolate up through the soil 50 feet away in the new crop area!!!!  Ugh!!  I hope I got him!!! Gopher...squirrel...who knows, but I put the handy dandy Squirrelinator out to see if it was squirrel.  Tomorrow off to market...hope to see some of you...especially the new voices I have been hearing...Moonstruck signing off!

Started the day as usual, up with the husband, made his lunch, checked to make sure the girls were up and running...signed any forgotten school papers, made sure a good lunch was made, start a load of laundry and a pot of coffee!!  Drop Meghan at school; neighbor takes the high school age one and I pick up...what a deal!!  Drive back in the driveway, close the gate, feed the chickens, let them out for the day...feed goats...check on temperature of greenhouse...sun is up...might be too hot.  Switch some more laundry.  Check email..process any orders...off to the great outdoors....today it was off to the bank to make deposits and then off to the Bashaws...discussed some business and then off to processing chickens...it was cold in there today!!  I really don't usually mind the cold, but I don't think I will be complaining later this week when the temperatures rise just a little. Finished up just in time to pick up Sierra from school, then Meghan, then back in time to grab a bite to eat and bring in eggs for the day.  I cooked a lot this weekend so we would have leftovers this busy week...and then took care of the sprouts, wheat grass and started a few flats for hydroponics and the greenhouse.  I am going to add a few basil to the hydroponics operation...would love to provide basil year around along with the head lettuce.  Started several herbs too for the new herb garden...need a lot of thyme....hahahah..get it time...okay, maybe I need to get back to farming because I definitely will never make it as a comedian.  Moonstruck signing off!!

A new world I have discovered...sprouts and wheat grass...I thought I was amazed at what I already see grow around here, but nothing like growing in a simple drainage cup or tray and watching Mother Nature say "watch what I can do even without soil!".  Muslin cloth bag is full of sprouts too...does not get more amazing than that, but every time I think I have seen it all the farm brings something new my way.  Nursery beds are well on their way in the old greenhouse and needed some thinning so I spread out in what room I had left....kale, lettuce, spinach, mustards.  The snow melted outside finally and underneath were not great looking, but alive Lacinato, Tango Lettuce, Celery and Collard Greens!  New trays are started inside under lights for when the Conleys calls and says "polyethylene is here".  Costco has a great deal on roses....climbers...two for $17.99 so the new retaining will look great with a climbing rose on each tier against the wall of my basement foundation.  Hydroponics experiment 101A starts on Monday!!  Head lettuce is the goal.  Compost is turned and put to one side getting ready for a pick up from the Bashaws of more manure...they are so sweet they always have at least two trash cans full of stinky manure and shavings waiting for me after processing a batch of chickens.  My coops get cleaned out tomorrow so the composter will be full and after emptying the one bin for the new greenhouse it will be filled again ready for a new batch hopefully by tomato time!! Michael is grading the backyard tomorrow for the future "monster size" patio....yes of course I have an ulterior motive....classes for my customers and students from future tours...always thinking Farm, Farm, Farm...fun, fun, fun...Moonstruck Signing out!!

Sprouting Joy turned the business over to me and so this week was experimental week for growing and eating!  I succeeded and they were so good!!! Next experiment is in Hemp bags!!  One little experimental line of Aquaponics going in this weekend for head lettuce.  From what I understand is that if you use chemicals it is hydroponics...is you use fish emulsion or fish poop from live fish it is called Aquaponics..I will be using fish emulsion, but the goal is to have fish too for dinner!  What a week, snow, sick kids, sprouts, shopped and found ornaments for next year's Christmas floral baskets...75% off!!  And I have been working on my compost issue...that is...not nearly enough!!  Bought a few truck loads from an organic supplier...just don't like it...very black, strong odor, splashes on everything...I like my sweeter stuff with a little hummus...we need it here in this clay soil...back to the drawing board.  Put out requests for goat and sheep manure to be dropped at the farm along with truck loads of pine needles and saving money for a semi load of chicken manure (but that will take 3 years to compost) and in the meantime my chicken manure is going in along with the meat production farm's, but it is still not enough!!  The Bashaws leant me their mulcher and even the chicken manure and shavings are going through hoping that if we chop it up even further it will speed things up!!  Back to the drawing board...or maybe bed for a little while...Moonstruck signing off.

Believe it or not I prefer snow around here...especially since we rarely get more than a foot or so.  I think we are at about 8 inches now at most, but it is still slowly falling!! It becomes so quiet that you feel like you are wrapped up in a big blanket of white peacful feelings.  Of course it is just beautiful and since the sun is peaking out just enough to melt the top of the greenhouse and snowfall has not been that heavy shoveling around the greenhouse was minimal.  Taking care of the animals to make sure they had water and food in a secure location actually took a little longer. Sounds like a day to catch up on paperwork...though I will probably wander out to the greenhouse for just a little while...nice and toasty in there.  Moonstruck Signing out.

This year was quite a whirlwind around here, and I am looking forward to the 2011 roller coaster soon to come!! Today was just a hint of what is to come.  Started off with some sprout experiments in the kitchen...Moonstruck is looking forward to adding this to their market choices. Then off to wrangling chicken thighs..deboning, grinding, spicing....ended up with boneless chicken thighs, ground chicken and Spicy Chicken Patties...and boy were those sausage patties a winner!!!  On sourdough with lettuce, Dijon mustard and swiss...ding, ding, ding...we have a winner!! Of course it was nice to have a success after watching all the freeze damage outside since the new greenhouse is not covered yet, polethylene is still on back order, but on the other hand I am getting a front and center lesson on what will freeze and return!!  Tango lettuce, Lacinato Kale, Sprouting Broccoli, Arugula and of course the onions are fine!!  Then everyone said "what is that humming sound"...so much for the low water bill...the chicken line had frozen at the wall of the house and a flood was rolling down hill flooding livestock central....ugh!  I ran to turn off the water, but the nice guys at the Water Dept put on a new cover and I could not get it off..yelled for Mike to get something to pry it off and a half hour later we had a temp fix on it.  Now off to New Years...be safe...and stick around to find out what 2011 has to offer for Moonstruck...I am not even sure...Moonstruck Signing Out!!

They forecasted rain...and it is raining...what a concept...something new to us here in the High Desert!.  Here I have had the rain collecting system last on the list and it should have been first!!  We have had more rain in the last 2 weeks than in the last year!! The new retaining wall my husband built is working well and the drain being lowered is great though we might lower it a little bit more.  Wow I love these retaining walls...they create new raised beds!!! A little cranberry here (yes another experiment), a little evergreen here for Christmas bouquets, some more lilac, some more lavender!!! Okay, I am ready to do the other 500 feet ....lets go....oh yeah... I have to save my money to finish the 20 x 100 greenhouse going up (polyethylene is on backorder), but then it is up and going!!! Corrals need to be picked up as soon as the roads dry out!! Goat pens need to be increased...have my eye on a few more Nigerian Dwarfs!!  Deciding on sheep breeds while waiting to put up grazing fence..so many fun projects and only 24 hours in a day, but the dirt moves now!!!  Another new concept to us....I did days worth of work in just hours!!  Moonstruck signing out...time to process chickens!!

Wow, what a day.  This is my favorite time of year to work outside...yes I know that does not follow the norm, but I am a winter person and I love working hard and not pouring sweat.  45 degrees with no wind is perfect working weather!!  I don't get wiped by the heat and I can keep a steady pace up for 6-7 hours easily.  Today, more onions of course...I think I am down to 400-500 more, but the beds that needed to be amended were too wet to work...if you work the soil when it is too wet you will actually damage its structure.  The remainder of the red onions are in and in between the rows of onion I tucked in Arugula, Tango lettuce, Mizuna mustard, more celery and about 150 Lacinato Kale or otherwise known as Black or Dinosaur kale...one of the more mild kales and very sturdy for market delivery.  I also went and did a little something just for me...a new asparagus and rhubarb bed.  This will be offered to the customers eventually too, but I am starting this project off slowly and letting the plants spread on their own saving me an expense as I slowly increase production.  Michael finished the last tier of the retaining wall creating four raised beds.  He wants some evergreens on top (which I plan on using for Christmas floral arrangements...they were beautiful in this year's arrangements), and then the final tiers are going to be a cranberry experiment, and if you know anything about cranberries...the words desert and cranberry usually are not even found on the same planet, but nothing ventured, nothing gained a dear friend reminded me today.  Merry Christmas again to all.  Moonstruck signing out...

I am on way outside…yes on Christmas to plant onions before the next storms come in…I am looking out my window and it is slowly coming in!! I am sure the storms will give me a lot more indoor time and greenhouse time later in the week….I love my greenhouse!!!

My blessings this year have been so abundant that saying “Thank You” just does not even begin to cover it!!But this Irish Blessing hopefully conveys a little of what I feel.

May you have warm words

On a cold evening,

A full moon on a dark night,

And the road downhill

All the way to your door.

Merry Christmas everyone and thank you again for supporting all our local High Desert Farmers!!

Rowena

Moonstruck Farms CSA